Well. That didn't work!

I fell off the ball with the plan to start running. My first day I ended up injuring my foot, which meant 2 weeks of not being able to do so, and then I got lazy.

Now that September is here I am hoping to get back into my 3 days a week at the gym. Lots of new classes and more at times I can make it. Time will tell if I will finally stick with it, but starting Monday (my next day off) I am back at it!

Day 1...Partial Success

So today did not go as I had hoped or planned. I woke up with a headache so bad I was laid up in my bed until 3pm. I think the drop in pressure after five days of sunshine was the cause, because my sinuses felt like they were going to explode and it truly felt like someone had taken a baseball bat to the back of my skull. (Yes, I DO know what that feels like, FYI)!

I felt better after a sinus pill and a smoothie (if you haven't tried it yet, add some Greek yogurt to your smoothie...divine!) so I decided I'd still go to Bodyflow, and let me tell you, I am so glad I did! It was an excellent class, and I did better than usual with the balance and ab tracks!

I am now headed to bed, hoping to feel up for a run on the treadmill and maybe a yoga class tomorrow.

Here we go again...

So I officially suck at this blogging thing, as well as keeping myself in shape. I have made a decision though, after seeing a few people close to me finish the Bluenose Marathon this past weekend: I want to run the half marathon next year. I have one full year to get myself in shape, so I can ease into things. I am going to start with the Couch to 5k Running Plan. It's only a two month plan, but as someone who has never done any form of distance running before, I don't want to overdo it and hurt myself. So, here we go. Day 1 is tomorrow. I am returning to the gym tomorrow for some time on the treadmill, and then tomorrow evening I am going to BodyFlow with my friend Rhonda. If anyone has healthy (but still yummy) recipes and a recommendation for a protein powder brand that doesn't taste like ass, please let me know; the stuff I have is really gritty and it's all I can do to get the stuff down. And if anyone wants to join me on this adventure, let me know! On that note, it's time to get some sleep. Night!

2012? Really?

2012 is here, and while I am not overly optimistic about any resolutions (I suck at keeping them), I need to start taking better care of myself. So I won't be making promises that I will go to the gym a certain number of times per week, or cutting out any food groups, etc. But I do intend to start living healthier and taking better care of myself and those I love.

Happy 2012 everyone, make it a good one!!

` summer sun don't leave us now that it's only just begun `.

This blog is only moderately fitness-related; it's more about how happy the sunshine makes me (I truly believe that happiness is a huge part of being healthy)!

Today, for the first time in OVER A MONTH (!!) the sun came out for more than an hour and the temperature exceeded 20°C. While I didn't get too much chance to go out and enjoy it (it was about 3:30pm by the time it got nice), I did go out a little early to get the bus and caught some extra sunshine (wearing sunscreen, of course!) It's been a long time coming. We still haven't had a full day of sun, and it has literally rained every single day for at least part of the day, for the past 35 consecutive. It's got me really stoked for the summer and all the fun outdoorsy stuff that comes with it. I generally just FEEL better in the summer; I'm sure most people do, but I find I am truly my happiest when it's warm and sunny, regardless of any other factors in my life.

This summer is going to be even more fantastic than usual because I have a steady job and some really amazing people to spend it with - for the first summer in about 5 years, I have a boyfriend who will be around for the summer, an amazing new group of friends and tons of plans for things to do! And hopefully chances to catch up with old friends as well, it seems like most of that group has moved or will be moving in the next few weeks - all to the same area of Ontario, coincidentally. I miss them, but I know that that is what happens when everyone grows up and finishes university!

Now on to something relevant. One of my biggest struggles with my lifestyle is my eating habits. I have never really paid too much attention to what I put into my body, but a friend of mine has been paying super close attention to nutritional info on the things she eats, and it got me curious about exactly what it is I put into my body on a regular basis. I know my sodium intake is iffy, purely on account of the amount of processed crap I eat. Anyway, my friend sent me the link to a really neat website, Lose It, designed to help people lose weight, that you just put in what you consumed for the day and it calculates the calories and (for most things) other nutritional values - fat, sodium, etc. You can also enter in your exercise for the day - from straight up working out to things like housework and walking the dog. It subtracts the amount of calories you burn exercising from your total consumed, to help you keep track of your goals on a daily basis.

Now, I am well aware, as I've stated before, that I do not need to lose weight. I've actually gained weight (from 104lbs when I started this journey to 112lbs now) in a healthy way through toning and such. But a huge part of being healthy is what you put into your body, and anything that makes it easier for me to a) keep track of what I eat and b) hold myself accountable for the things I consume that I shouldn't, the easier it will be for me to get and stay healthy.

I still haven't gotten around to posting my turkey burger recipe. I will do that soon, I promise!

` honey i'm weak in the knees for you. `

So it's been a little over a month since I updated. Things got pretty hectic and busy with exams last month and then I picked up a ton of extra shifts at work. I was doing pretty well with making it to BodyFlow class, though I will admit I haven't been to Combat since my last post. I find the combination of two in one night causes havoc for my knees, and with the constant rain we've had for the last 3 weeks I don't need any help making them flare up. I have arthritis in my right knee, and I suspect it's starting to reveal itself in my left as well. I get some pain and weakness when the weather is bad, and swelling after exercising and if it's humid or damp (which is always around here). My doctor has said it's nothing to worry about unless the pain starts to become debilitating or I start losing function. The weakness has improved some since I started getting used to the classes and actually doing something other than sitting on the couch.

My eating habits for the past week have been touch and go...We ordered pizza on Tuesday and went for wing night Wednesday (I had fish and chips) so I ate quite a bit of fast food last week, but we also ate a few really good meals at friends' places as well. The Sunday Matt cooked spinach pasta and tonight I made chicken breasts, mashed potatoes made with skim milk and Blue Menu margarine, and broccoli. I admit, I negated some of the healthiness of that with cheese sauce, but again, it was made with skim milk and cheese so it's not AS bad.

So I missed a week of BodyFlow last week because I was just too damn depressed from the rain and exhausted from working 7 of 8 days to be bothered. I'm also back in school for a summer class so trying to balance everything is a challenge.I went back this evening and I must say, as difficult and painful as the newest release is, I freaking LOVE it! Combined with the late-afternoon sun peeking out around 3pm and a really gorgeous evening, I currently feel content down to my very core. It seems silly I'm sure, but I always feel so much better after I go.

I'm hoping we will get some more good weather soon...it's already starting to cloud over and we're forecasted to get more rain from now until Sunday, then one nice day and more rain. I want to start walking but it's hard to get off the couch when the weather is so crappy!

Anyway, time to stretch and then do some homework before bed! I'm going to post a few of my favorite healthy recipes coming up over the next bit, starting with my turkey burgers next time I remember! :)

` a little less conversation; a little more action. `

So my last post was all about why I've decided to start a blog, and my reasons behind actually getting off my ass and doing something about getting into shape. I suppose I should update on where I was a few months ago when I started, and what has happened since.

In December, a rep from Goodlife Fitness came into work to promote the new facility at Penhorn. They told us all about the company, what was offered, and gave us a pretty good introductory rate. I had been thinking about joining a gym somewhere for a while, so I figured, why not? I signed up that day, and the gym itself opened in January. I was shocked and horrified when, at my initial assessment, my blood pressure was through the roof and my resting heart rate was up - my blood pressure has always been on the low end of normal, and my heart rate normal. I was a little discouraged as well, by the fact that the trainer was really forceful and basically told me there was no way I could succeed without paying $9000 for an intense training package. I left the gym in tears, and did not return for my 4-week follow up appointment.

Though discouraging, I didn't let that trainer keep me from the gym; I started off that evening with a BodyCombat class, and vowed to make this part of my weekly routine. I also decided then that 3 times a week was a good place for me to start with going to the gym. I kept this up for all of two weeks before things went to hell. First I got a sinus infection that moved into a chest cold, and anyone with half a brain knows that when you can't breathe, it's really hard to exercise. Then, as soon as I recovered from that I was into midterm papers and exams at school. Combine this with crap weather and having to bus around in the rain/snow/ice etc, then follow that up with 3 weeks of the worst cold of my life, and you hit mid-March, and a grand total of 3 trips to the gym in about 6 weeks. Suffice it to say, I fell off the horse.

I started back last week, with BodyCombat preceded by BodyFlow on Tuesday evening (they call it BodyBalance on the link, but it's the same class). This, at first, may seem like a very strange combination, but I loved it the first time I tried it. I find the BodyFlow class is a great warm-up to the more intense BodyCombat class, plus they work different parts of the body. I missed this past Tuesday night again because we had tickets for the Music As A Weapon V Tour, but I got up at 7:30 to go to a 9am BodyFlow class yesterday to make up for it, then we went bowling last night. I think that, on my weeks I don't work Fridays, I might make BodyFlow a twice-a-week thing. I already feel like my flexibility is improving after just 2 classes, and I'm definitely working muscles that were long-since forgotten (believe it or not, I once had a killer 6-pack!)

Another area that is a constant work-in-progress for me is healthy eating. I started off really well, then fell back into the vicious cycle of grabbing whatever is quick and edible, regardless of nutritional value. I went out and bought a bunch of groceries yesterday, all healthy stuff. I made a chicken pot pie last night, and though pastry is high in fat, I bought the kind made with all-vegetable shortening and used no-salt-added chicken broth for the gravy (2% of the daily recommended intake of sodium vs. 38% in the regular kind). I also made a few minor changes to some of the ingredients for things I like to eat and cook - skim milk instead of 1%, whole wheat macaroni and Low Fat cheese for homemade mac and cheese, ground turkey for burgers, and fruit instead of sugary treats. I've been drinking a lot more water and consuming less alcohol lately as well - not only do I not have the time or money to go out, but I find that I get too hungover the next day to make it worth it to drink much anymore.

So that is where I am at right now. I'm trying hard to manage stress - it's that time of year again where school gets busy and everyone has a million places they want me to be at once, plus some restructuring at work means a lot of changes to the type and quantity of my workload. I just finished my first exam this morning, and have 2 more and a presentation due next weekend. It's also the time of year when the weather gets better though, so there's more motivation to go outside and more things to go do.

Speaking of things to do and nice weather, it's about time I got off the computer!